


the pressure is closing in

by lethargicProfessor



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: Comfort, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-13
Updated: 2017-08-13
Packaged: 2018-12-14 22:15:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 741
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11792577
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lethargicProfessor/pseuds/lethargicProfessor
Summary: "Falling from ice, the son of Neptune shall drown."Even after the fact, the fear of drowning haunts him. (Annabeth helps.)





	the pressure is closing in

The noise is enough to pull Annabeth from a light sleep, her hand reaching automatically for the bronze dagger at her hip that hasn’t been there in months.

It takes her a second to focus in the dark – she’s safe, or as safe as a demigod can be in New York, a quilt pooled around her waist. Sally Jackson’s apartment still smells like chocolate chip cookies, and the soft sounds of the city drift in through the cracked windows that let in a light breeze.

She wonders if that woke her; an ambulance passing by, or a car honking, but the sound comes again from the room down the hall. A whimper, like the sound a cornered animal makes, low and painful in the back of the throat.

A spike of fear digs into her ribs as she kicks the quilt off fully, bare feet touching the cool floor as she carefully makes her way towards the sound. To Percy’s room.

His door whispers open when she presses against it, and she feels her shoulders relax as she takes in the sight. Moonlight streams through a crack in his blue curtains, giving her just enough light to avoid any stray books on the floor. (His skateboard almost trips her, but she manages to catch herself with only a stifled swear.)

Percy is still asleep, but as Annabeth approaches she frowns at his furrowed brow, at the hands wrapped tight into his sheets. He whimpers again, the cords in his neck straining, fighting against an enemy only he can see.

“Percy?” She whispers, reaching for the hand that’s fisted into the sheets. “Percy, wake up…”

Her touch does the trick; Percy jerks away, eyes wild, and Annabeth isn’t surprised when he twists at her wrist to defend against an enemy. She breaks his hold easily enough, and rubs at the sore spot absently. “Percy, it’s just me…”

“Annabeth?” He croaks, dazed and still half asleep. She can still see the dregs of the nightmare in his eyes, the panic that he can’t quite wave away. 

“It’s me,” she confirms, sitting on the edge of his bed. Percy relaxes, letting himself drop back heavily into his pillows. His hair is a mess of black curls, and Annabeth can’t help but brush the worst of it away from his forehead.

He offers her a weak grin, letting his eyes drift closed. “What time is it?”

“Too early.” Annabeth watches him for a second, then reaches for his hands, pulling them onto her lap. His palms are sweaty, but they’re usually always sweaty. “Tartarus?”

“No.” He clears his throat, voice still hoarse, and squeezes her hand for reassurance. “No…I um. I was drowning.”

“You’re a son of Poseidon.” Annabeth reminds him, running her thumb over the scars on the back of his hand. “You can’t drown.”

He hums like he knows, but his hands are still clammy, and he doesn’t look up.

He’s mentioned it before, the fall into the muskeg where he almost drowned, but the nightmares always focused on other things, and they rarely brought them up. “Do you wanna talk about it?”

“Nah…” Percy yawns, turning to face her. In the dim light his eyes are dark, but he offers her a soft smile. “Sorry for waking you up, Wise Girl.”

Sighing, Annabeth rolls her shoulders, feeling her sternum pop with the motion. “Move over.”

Percy barely has time to move his head before Annabeth drops down next to him, wiggling to get her legs under the covers. His pillow is mildly damp from the drool, she imagines, but after having gone through so much with a guy, Annabeth figured she could overlook it just once.

His twin bed barely fits them both, and Annabeth has to wrap her leg around his to feel like she isn’t about to fall off his bed, but he is warm and his bed is surprisingly comfortable.

“Is this okay?” She asks, pressing her face into his shoulder. 

Percy grins, pressing a soft kiss to her forehead. “I was just gonna ask you that. I might drool on you.”

“Just don’t make it a habit.” Annabeth’s arm is scrunched against her chest and Percy’s side, and it takes her a few more minutes to settle comfortably against him, but she feels him relax, eventually dozing off under her hand.

The nightmares aren’t as bad for either of them, and Annabeth considers making it a habit. 


End file.
